The legendary explorer grabs his hat and his well-known rope and swings into theaters with Harrison Ford reprising the iconic role and Steven Spielberg directing.
The Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday that the fifth film in the action adventure series will open July 19, 2019. The last “Indiana Jones” movie was 2008’s poorly received “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” which co-starred Shia LaBeouf as Indiana’s son. It followed a nearly 20-year gap in the franchise after 1989’s “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.”
Another “Indiana Jones” film has long been rumored, occasionally with whispers of different actors taking over the role from the 73-year-old Ford. But Spielberg has repeatedly insisted Ford would never be replaced. The actor’s return as his famous fedora-wearing archaeologist comes shortly after reprising his equally iconic Han Solo in “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
Alan Horn, chairman of the Walt Disney Studios said that Indiana Jones is one of the most legendary icons in cinematic history, and he is really excited to see him back to the screen in 2019, he also said that is rare to have such a perfect combination of director, producers, actor and role, and he can’t be more excited to join this journey with Harrison and Steven.”
Three things we know about Indiana Jones 5
With the exception of The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, the Indiana Jones films starred a much younger Harrison Ford. The temptation must have been very real to reboot the franchise – to hire a new actor to play the iconic role, and to feature a young Indiana Jones once again. Instead, Disney is keeping Harrison Ford and, by extension, the continuity that fans know and love. It means that Harrison Ford will be 77 when the as-yet-untitled film is released!
In keeping with the fact that it’s not a reboot, Disney has brought together the classic Indiana Jones team – with the exception of George Lucas. Harrison Ford is on board, as is Steven Spielberg. “It’s rare to have such a perfect combination of director, producers, actor and role,” said Disney chairman Alan Horn, “and we couldn’t be more excited to embark on this adventure with Harrison and Steven.”
As with Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Disney are intending this to carry the same spirit and tone as the original.
George Lucas’ The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull did real damage to Indiana Jones, and it’s telling that Disney only turned to Indiana Jones once their Star Wars relaunch had proven successful. Disney purchased Lucasfilm in 2012 and wasted no time setting out their vision for Star Wars – that was their priority. But they don’t intend to waste any of the $4.05 billion they paid for Lucasfilm, and their goal with this new Indiana Jones film will be to reverse the damage done by Lucas to his own creation.
That’s why George Lucas isn’t involved. Although Indiana Jones was his baby, his more recent decisions – the Star Wars prequels, carefully avoided in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, or his return to Indiana Jones in The Crystal Skull – have left his judgement questionable. Disney wasn’t interested in Lucas’ ideas for Star Wars, and they don’t want him on board for this either.
Because Disney is focused on building a new franchise, the reality is that we can expect there to be other, vitally important roles in this film – new actors and actresses who can carry the franchise onwards.
Source: WWLP